You’re Either On The Bus…
By 1965, Joplin’s health was spiraling downwards, her body ravaged by rampant drug use. She had become a gaunt specter of herself, her skeletal frame alarming her friends. Concerned, they believed the best remedy was a return to her roots in Texas, a chance to heal and break free from addiction’s chains. In a show of love and support, they threw a lively bus fare party, ensuring she could afford the journey home.
In the blossoming spring of 1965, deep in the heart of Texas, her folks grew fretful over her dwindling 88-pound frame. But Janis, ever the firecracker, decided to turn her life around. She kicked the nasty habits of drugs and alcohol, dove headfirst into anthropology studies at Lamar University, and even began a solo music gig in Austin, strumming an acoustic guitar. All this while flaunting a beehive hairdo, a style Amy Winehouse would popularize years later.